Method for removing genes encoding antibiotic resistance

ABSTRACT

A method for removing antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). The method includes the following steps: 1) coagulation and sedimentation of waste water; 2) biochemical treatment; 3) disinfection by peracetic acid; 4) sterilization by high pressure CO 2 ; 5) photocatalysis by nano-titanium dioxide (TiO 2 ); and 6) depositing.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Pursuant to 35 U.S.C. §119 and the Paris Convention Treaty, this application claims the benefit of Chinese Patent Application No. 201210086161.8 filed Mar. 29, 2012, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Inquiries from the public to applicants or assignees concerning this document or the related applications should be directed to: Matthias Scholl P.C., Attn.: Dr. Matthias Scholl Esq., 14781 Memorial Drive, Suite 1319, Houston, Tex. 77079.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates to a method for removing antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) from wastewater.

2. Description of the Related Art

Extensive use or abuse of antibiotics has resulted in more and more serious problems of environmental pollution. Selective pressure imposed by the antibiotics is capable of inducing animal microorganisms or environmental microorganisms to produce antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), which seriously threatens ecological environmental security and human health. ARGs are capable of horizontally transferring among floras of the same or different species via plasmid, integration-gene cassette, transposon, and other mobile genetic elements. Characterized in persistence and replicability in the environment, ARGs have been considered to be a new type of environmental pollutants.

A waste water treatment system is a main way for the antibiotic resistance genes to enter the water environment. The antibiotic resistance genes enter the water environment via medical waste water, pharmaceutical waste water, farm sewage, and domestic sewage. Because a conventional waste water treatment technology has no obvious effect in removing many antibiotics and antibiotic resistance genes, the treated water still contains a considerable number of resistance genes.

Outlet water from the waste water treatment plant and sludge applied to soil are considered to be important resources of antibiotic resistance genes distributed in the surface water, soil water, and groundwater. The use of ARGs molecular tags for tracing the source of the antibiotic resistance genes has proved that resistance genes of antibiotics relevant to human diseases are mainly from waste water treatment plants rather than nearby livestock farms or upper rivers. Thus, the removal of the resistance genes or resistant bacteria can be realized by focusing on safe recovery of the waste water; and the sterilization of the waste water is a necessary process for improving the safety and quality of the water.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the above-described problems, it is one objective of the invention to provide a method for removing antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). The method of the invention is capable of effectively removing antibiotic resistance genes, and provides technical support for advanced waste water treatment, and improves the safety and quality of the water.

To achieve the above objective, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention, there is provided a method for removing antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), the method comprising the following steps:

1) coagulation and sedimentation

-   -   introducing waste water into a coagulation and sedimentation         tank; coagulating and depositing the waste water using         polyaluminumchloride (PAC) as a flocculate and polyacrylamide         (PAM) as a coagulant, a dosage of the flocculate being 3-5 mg         per liter of the waste water, and a dosage of the coagulant         being 1-3 mg per liter of the waste water; and introducing a         supernatant after deposition into a sand filter for further         lowering a water turbidity;

2) biochemical treatment

-   -   conducting an anaerobic-anoxic-oxic (A²/O) activated sludge         process to remove nitrogen and phosphorus from the waste water         after sand filtering in step 1) and to lower a chemical oxygen         demand (COD); and introducing the water into a secondary         sedimentation tank for slurry separation;

3) disinfection by peracetic acid

-   -   pumping the waste water after the biochemical treatment from the         secondary sedimentation tank into a sterilization tower; and         disinfecting the water using peracetic acid for 10 min, a dosage         of peracetic acid being 80-100 mg/L;     -   a preparation of peracetic acid comprising the following steps:         inputting glacial acetic acid into a barrel, mixing glacial         acetic acid with 2% of sulfuric acid; adding 30% of hydrogen         peroxide, a dosage ratio between hydrogen peroxide and glacial         acetic acid being 1:2, and adding 1 g/L of phosphoric acid         having a concentration of 0.1% as a stabilizer to form peracetic         acid; and preserving peracetic acid at a room temperature for 2         days;

4) sterilization by high pressure CO₂

-   -   injecting CO₂ gas having a pressure of 0.5-1.5 mPa into the         sterilization tower, and maintaining the high pressure CO₂ to         sterilize for 5-10 min, the CO₂ gas being output from a high         pressure CO₂ cylinder, passing through a pressure reducing valve         and a high pressure pipeline, and finally into the sterilization         tower from microporous aeration tubes arranged at a bottom of         the sterilization tower;

5) photocatalysis by nano-titanium dioxide (TiO₂)

-   -   introducing the water after the sterilization into a nano-TiO₂         photocatalytic oxidation pool; the photocatalytic oxidation pool         being provided with a spherical nano-TiO₂ suspension filler         comprising a nuclear body and a coating; a nano-TiO₂ coating         being coated on the nuclear body; the nuclear body being made of         a polyethylene material by one step injection molding; a radius         of the nuclear body being between 3 and 10 cm; the coating being         formed by dip coating TiO₂ powder having a grain size of not         exceeding 100 nm; a thickness of the coating being between 0.05         and 0.45 mm; and a gravity of the spherical nano-TiO₂ suspension         filler being 95-99.8% of a gravity of water;     -   meanwhile, tilting a plurality of three-layered nano-TiO₂ meshes         for 30° in the sedimentation tank to oxidize, decompose,         degrade, and remove resistant genes from the waste water under         daylight or ultraviolet irradiation; and     -   the nano-TiO₂ mesh being formed by coating a layer of nano-TiO₂         onto a stainless steel mesh; and

6) depositing the water for 1 h after step 5), finely filtering the water to remove impurities.

In a class of this embodiment, the flocculant in step 1) is a polymeric ferric sulfuric solution. The coagulant is a mixture of a poly diallyl dimethyl ammonium chloride, a polyaluminum chloride, aluminum sulfate, and ferric chloride having a ratio of 3:2:1:1. A dosage of the coagulant is 20-150 mg/L.

In a class of this embodiment, the nuclear body of the spherical nano-TiO₂ suspension filler is in a shape of an ellipsoid, a hollow sphere, a cube, and a cuboid.

Advantages of the invention are summarized as follows:

The method meets demands of advanced waste water treatment, water reuse, economic promotion, and social and environmental sustainability. The method focuses on toxic pollutants-antibiotic resistance genes and pathogenic microorganisms in waste water treatment; uses a combination of advanced technologies, and employs carbon dioxide sterilization technology in the waste water treatment. Thus, the method effectively removes resistant genes, and provides technical support for advanced waste water treatment and the safety and quality of the water.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

For further illustrating the invention, experiments detailing a method for removing antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) are described below. It should be noted that the following examples are intended to describe and not to limit the invention.

Example 1

A method for removing antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), comprises the following steps:

1) Coagulation and sedimentation

-   -   Introduce waste water into a coagulation and sedimentation tank,         coagulate and deposit the waste water by using a flocculate PAC         and a coagulant PAM. A dosage of the flocculate PAC is 5 mg per         liter of the waste water, and a dosage of the coagulant PAM is 3         mg per liter of the waste water. Introduce a supernatant after         deposition into a sand filter to further lower a water         turbidity.

2) Biochemical treatment

-   -   Conduct an anaerobic-anoxic-oxic (A²/O) activated sludge process         to remove nitrogen and phosphorus from the water after sand         filtering in step 1) and to lower a chemical oxygen demand         (COD); and introduce the water into a secondary sedimentation         tank for slurry separation.

3) Disinfection by peracetic acid

-   -   Pump the water after the biochemical treatment from the         secondary sedimentation tank into a sterilization tower;         disinfect the water by using peracetic acid for 10 min. A dosage         of peracetic acid is 100 mg/L.     -   The preparation of peracetic acid comprises the following steps:         input glacial acetic acid into a barrel; mix glacial acetic acid         with 2% sulfuric acid; add 30% hydrogen peroxide (a dosage ratio         between hydrogen peroxide and glacial acetic acid is 1:2), and         add 1 g/L of phosphoric acid having a concentration of 0.1% as a         stabilizer to form peracetic acid; and preserve peracetic acid         at a room temperature for 2 days.

4) Sterilization by high pressure CO₂

-   -   Inject CO₂ gas having a pressure of 1.5 mPa into the         sterilization tower in step 3). The CO₂ gas is output from a         high pressure CO₂ cylinder, passes through a pressure reducing         valve and a high pressure pipeline, and finally into the         sterilization tower from microporous aeration tubes arranged at         a bottom of the sterilization tower. Distribute the CO₂ gas in         the water for sterilization; and maintain a time of the high         pressure CO₂ sterilization for 10 min

5) Photocatalysis by nano-titanium dioxide (TiO₂)

-   -   Introduce the water after the high pressure CO₂ sterilization         into a nano-TiO₂ photocatalytic oxidation pool. The         photocatalytic oxidation pool is provided with a spherical         nano-TiO₂ suspension filler comprising a nuclear body and a         coating. A layer of nano-TiO₂ is coated on the nuclear body. The         nuclear body is made of a polyethylene material by one step         injection molding. A radius of the nuclear body is 3-10 cm. The         coating is formed by dip coating TiO₂ powder having a grain size         of no exceeding 100 nm. A thickness of the coating is         0.05-0.45 mm. A specific gravity of the spherical nano-TiO₂         suspension filler is 95-99.8% of a specific gravity of water.     -   The surface of the spherical nano-TiO₂ suspension filler is         coated with the layer of the nano-TiO₂. TiO₂ belongs to an         N-type semiconductor. According to a theory of photocatalysis:         the N-type semiconductor material has discontinuous energy         bands, that is, a forbidden band exists between a valence band         and a conduction band. When oxide semiconductor particles are         irradiated by photons having energy larger than a width of the         forbidden band, electrons jump from the valence band to the         conduction band, thereby producing electron-hole pairs. The         electrons have reducibility, and the holes have oxidation. The         holes are in contact with OH⁻ arranged on a surface of the oxide         semiconductor particle and produce OH free radicals having a         strong oxidation. The active OH free radicals oxidize many         refractory organic matters into inorganic matters, such as CO₂         and H₂O.     -   Chemical equation is summarized as follows:         TiO₂ →e+h′         h′+H₂O→.O⁻ ₂         .O⁻ ₂++H′→H₂O.         2H₂O.→O₂+H₂O₂         H₂O₂+.O⁻ ₂→HO.+OH⁻+O₂  (1)     -   Meanwhile, tilt a plurality of three-layered nano-TiO₂ meshes         for 30° in the sedimentation tank to oxidize, decompose,         degrade, and remove resistant genes from the waste water under         the day light, ultraviolet irradiation of cloudy day and a time         after the sunset.     -   The nano-TiO₂ mesh is formed by coating a layer of nano-TiO₂         onto a stainless steel mesh.

6) deposit the water for 1 h after step 5), finely filter the water to remove remaining impurities.

The flocculant in step 1) is a polymeric ferric sulfuric solution. The coagulant is a mixture of a poly diallyl dimethyl ammonium chloride, a polyaluminum chloride, aluminum sulfate, and ferric chloride having a ratio of 3:2:1:1.

A I-type integron (incI 1), a sulfa resistance gene (sul I, sul II, sul III), and a tetracycline resistance gene (tet A, tet M, tet W, tet Q) in an outlet water are shown in Table 1:

TABLE 1 intI 1 sul I sul II sul III tet A tet M tet M tet W Inlet water quality 7.5 × 10⁸ 3.6 × 10⁹ 4.2 × 10⁷ 5.4 × 10⁷ 5.1 × 10⁵ 2.2 × 10⁴ 8.9 × 10⁷ 3.4 × 10⁵ index(copies/ml) Killing rate/lg 7.75 8.64 6.87 6.52 4.99 4.00 6.87 4.32

Example 2

A method for removing antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), comprising the following steps:

1) Coagulation and sedimentation

-   -   Introduce waste water into a coagulation and sedimentation tank,         coagulate and deposit the waste water by using a flocculate PAC         and a coagulant PAM. A dosage of the flocculate PAC is 3 mg per         liter of the waste water, and a dosage of the coagulant PAM is 1         mg per liter of the waste water. Introduce a supernatant after         deposition into a sand filter to further lower a water         turbidity.

2) Biochemical treatment

-   -   Conduct an anaerobic-anoxic-oxic (A²/O) activated sludge process         to remove nitrogen and phosphorus from the water after sand         filtering in step 1) and to lower a chemical oxygen demand         (COD); and introduce the water into a secondary sedimentation         tank for slurry separation.

3) Disinfection by peracetic acid

-   -   Pump the water after the biochemical treatment from the         secondary sedimentation tank into a sterilization tower;         disinfect the water by using peracetic acid for 10 min. A dosage         of peracetic acid is 80 mg/L.     -   A preparation of peracetic acid comprises the following steps:         input glacial acetic acid into a barrel; mix glacial acetic acid         with 2% sulfuric acid; add 30% hydrogen peroxide (a dosage ratio         between hydrogen peroxide and glacial acetic acid is 1:2), and         add 1 g/L of phosphoric acid having a concentration of 0.1% as a         stabilizer to form peracetic acid; and preserve peracetic acid         at a room temperature for 2 days.

4) Sterilization by high pressure CO₂

-   -   Inject CO₂ gas having a pressure of 0.5-1.5 mPa into the         sterilization tower in step 3). The CO₂ gas is output from a         high pressure CO₂ cylinder, passes through a pressure reducing         valve and a high pressure pipeline, and finally into the         sterilization tower from microporous aeration tubes arranged at         a bottom of the sterilization tower. Distribute the CO₂ gas in         the water for sterilization; and maintain a time of the high         pressure CO₂ sterilization for 5 min.

5) Photocatalysis by nano-titanium dioxide (TiO₂)

-   -   Introduce the water after the high pressure CO₂ sterilization         into a nano-TiO₂ photocatalytic oxidation pool. The         photocatalytic oxidation pool is provided with a spherical         nano-TiO₂ suspension filler comprising a nuclear body and a         coating. A layer of nano-TiO₂ is coated on the nuclear body. The         nuclear body is made of a polyethylene material by one step         injection molding. A radius of the nuclear body is 3-10 cm. The         coating is formed by dip coating TiO₂ powder having a grain size         of no exceeding 100 nm. A thickness of the coating is         0.05-0.45 mm. A specific gravity of the spherical nano-TiO₂         suspension filler is 95-99.8% of a specific gravity of water.     -   The surface of the spherical nano-TiO₂ suspension filler is         coated with the layer of the nano-TiO₂. TiO₂ belongs to an         N-type semiconductor. According to a theory of photocatalysis:         the N-type semiconductor material has discontinuous energy         bands, that is, a forbidden band exists between a valence band         and a conduction band. When oxide semiconductor particles are         irradiated by photons having energy larger than a width of the         forbidden band, electrons jump from the valence band to the         conduction band, thereby producing electron-hole pairs. The         electrons have reducibility, and the holes have oxidation. The         holes are in contact with OH⁻ arranged on a surface of the oxide         semiconductor particle and produce OH free radicals having a         strong oxidation. The active OH free radicals oxidize many         refractory organic matters into inorganic matters, such as CO₂         and H₂O.     -   Chemical equation is summarized as follows:         TiO₂ →>e+h′         h′+H₂O→.O⁻ ₂         .O⁻ ₂++H′→H₂O.         2H₂O.→O₂+H₂O₂         H₂O₂+.O⁻ ₂→HO.+OH⁻+O₂  (1)     -   Meanwhile, tilt a plurality of three-layered nano-TiO₂ meshes         for 30° in the sedimentation tank to oxidize, decompose,         degrade, and remove resistant genes from the waste water under         the day light, ultraviolet irradiation of cloudy day and a time         after the sunset.     -   The nano-TiO₂ mesh is formed by coating a layer of nano-TiO₂         onto a stainless steel mesh.

6) deposit the water for 1 h after step 5), finely filter the water to remove remaining impurities.

The flocculant in step 1) is a polymeric ferric sulfuric solution. The coagulant is a mixture of a poly diallyl dimethyl ammonium chloride, a polyaluminum chloride, aluminum sulfate, and ferric chloride having a ratio of 3:2:1:1. A dosage of the coagulant is 20-150 mg/L.

A I-type integron (incI 1), a sulfa resistance gene (sul I, sul II, sul III), and a tetracycline resistance gene (tet A, tet M, tet W, tet Q) in an outlet water are shown in Table 2:

TABLE 2 intI 1 sul I sul II sul III tet A tet M tet M tet W Inlet water quality 3.3 × 10⁵ 3.2 × 10⁶ 5.6 × 10⁶ 1.9 × 10³ 2.1 × 10⁴ 6.9 × 10⁴ 6.3 × 10⁴ 5.4 × 10² index(copies/ml) Killing rate/lg 4.75 5.94 5.86 2.72 3.99 3.95 3.87 1.99

Preferably, add an adsorption column comprising an adsorbent as an end of the biochemical treatment in step 2) to adsorb soluble microbial products (SMP) in the water to be treated; and steps 3)-6) are followed until the recovered water is obtained.

The adsorbent is a nano-superfine powder adsorbent. The nanometer superfine powder adsorbent is prepared by using the following ingredients: 10-25 weight parts of a trimethylsilyl cage polysilsesquioxane, 5-10 weight parts of a nano-active carbon powder, 5-10 weight parts of a nano-diatomaceous earth, 18-28 weight parts of a active clay. The above ingredients are mixed at a room temperature to form the nano-superfine powder adsorbent.

While particular embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be made without departing from the invention in its broader aspects, and therefore, the aim in the appended claims is to cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention. 

The invention claimed is:
 1. A method for removing antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), the method comprising the following steps: 1) coagulation and sedimentation introducing waste water into a coagulation and sedimentation tank; coagulating and depositing the waste water using polyaluminumchloride (PAC) as a flocculate and polyacrylamide (PAM) as a coagulant, a dosage of the flocculate being 3-5 mg per liter of the waste water, and a dosage of the coagulant being 1-3 mg per liter of the waste water; and introducing a supernatant after deposition into a sand filter for further lowering a water turbidity; 2) biochemical treatment conducting an anaerobic-anoxic-oxic (A²/O) activated sludge process to remove nitrogen and phosphorus from the waste water after sand filtering in step 1) and to lower a chemical oxygen demand (COD); and introducing the water into a secondary sedimentation tank for slurry separation; 3) disinfection by peracetic acid pumping the waste water after the biochemical treatment from the secondary sedimentation tank into a sterilization tower; and disinfecting the water using peracetic acid for 10 min, a dosage of peracetic acid being 80-100 mg/L, and a preparation of peracetic acid comprising the following steps: inputting glacial acetic acid into a barrel, mixing glacial acetic acid with 2% of sulfuric acid; adding 30% of hydrogen peroxide, a dosage ratio between hydrogen peroxide and glacial acetic acid being 1:2, and adding 1 g/L of phosphoric acid having a concentration of 0.1% as a stabilizer to form peracetic acid; and preserving peracetic acid at a room temperature for 2 days; 4) sterilization by high pressure CO₂ injecting CO₂ gas having a pressure of 0.5-1.5 mPa into the sterilization tower, and maintaining the high pressure CO₂ to sterilize for 5-10 min, the CO₂ gas being output from a high pressure CO₂ cylinder, passing through a pressure reducing valve and a high pressure pipeline, and finally into the sterilization tower from microporous aeration tubes arranged at a bottom of the sterilization tower; 5) photocatalysis by nano-titanium dioxide (TiO₂) introducing the water after the sterilization into a nano-TiO₂ photocatalytic oxidation pool, and tilting a plurality of three-layered nano-TiO₂ meshes for 30° in the sedimentation tank to oxidize, decompose, degrade, and remove resistant genes from the waste water under daylight or ultraviolet irradiation, the photocatalytic oxidation pool being provided with a spherical nano-TiO₂ suspension filler comprising a nuclear body and a coating; a nano-TiO₂ coating being coated on the nuclear body; the nuclear body being made of a polyethylene material by one step injection molding; a radius of the nuclear body being between 3 and 10 cm; the coating being formed by dip coating TiO₂ powder having a grain size of not exceeding 100 nm; a thickness of the coating being between 0.05 and 0.45 mm; and a gravity of the spherical nano-TiO₂ suspension filler being 95-99.8% of a gravity of water; and the nano-TiO₂ mesh being formed by coating a layer of nano-TiO₂ onto a stainless steel mesh; and 6) depositing the water for 1 h after step 5), finely filtering the water to remove impurities.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the flocculant in step 1) is a polymeric ferric sulfuric solution; the coagulant is a mixture of a poly diallyl dimethyl ammonium chloride, a polyaluminum chloride, aluminum sulfate, and ferric chloride having a ratio of 3:2:1:1; and a dosage of the coagulant is 20-150 mg/L.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the nuclear body of the spherical nano-TiO₂ suspension filler is in the shape of an ellipsoid, a hollow sphere, a cube, or a cuboid. 